Yosemite National Park’s ‘Hidden Gem’ Only 1 Percent of Visitors Ever See [Video]

Most visitors to Yosemite National Park flock to the iconic Yosemite Valley, with its sweeping views of El Capitan and Yosemite Falls. But for those looking to escape the crowds and discover a lesser-known landscape of waterfalls, granite cliffs and alpine lakes, there’s another destination worth the detour: Hetch Hetchy.

“Hetch Hetchy is in the northwest part of Yosemite. Only about 1 percent of people who visit Yosemite go to Hetch Hetchy—that’s only 40,000 to 50,000 people a year,” James Ian, the founder of Parks Collecting, told Newsweek.

Parks Collecting is a website offering detailed guides and itineraries for U.S. national parks. Ian has published nine national park itinerary planners and has been featured several times in the annual National Parks Special Edition from USA Today.

Having spent the past 35 years exploring 83 countries and visiting nearly every U.S. national park, Ian has developed a sharp eye for hidden …